Belt making machine



I Dec. 2, 1958 F. PASSARO ETAL 2,862,467

BELT MAKING MACHINE 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 5, 1954 IN V EN TOR) 04 M a 1 5 a p 4 KM M m/ Z Z Dec. 2, 1958 M IF. PAssARO ETAL 2,852,437

BELT MAKING MACHINE Filed May 3, 1954 '3 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VEN TORS 564/1? 255 450 M44 /444 644- :44

Dec. 2, 1958 F. PAssARo ET AL 2,852,467

BELT MAKING MACHINE Filed May a, 1954 s Sheets-Sheet :5-

IN VEN TORS 46 Ffemvx P453420 was MAL/4A4 644 V4 lzzzzzszx/ I FIG. 12. a 1 15.14. 1 /515. "Ma o the backing to complete the belt.

United States Patent BELT MAKING MACHINE Frank Passaro, Brooklyn, and William Galya, Brewster, N. Y., assignors to Joseph 'Machine Co., Inc., New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York 7 Application May 3, 1954, Serial No. 427,232

13 Claims. (Cl. 112-152) The primary object of the present invention is to generally improve the manufacture of belts, particularly belts made up of a previously prepared backing or stiffening material over which a strip of fabric, ordinarily dress material is sewed. The operation has heretofore required a skilled operator because of the important step of folding or forming the fabric atthe point and holding it in formed shape on the backing.

In an effort to overcome this difficulty it has heretofore been proposed to form the point with mechanical assistance, and to cement the fabric to the backing, but the use of a cement has grave disadvantages, and ordinarily the fabric would anyway subsequently be stitched to It has also been attempted to provide an automatic apparatus to fold the fabric at the point and to stitch the belt around the point as well as along the sides, but such apparatus has not proved commercially successful.

Accordingly one object of the prevent invention is to provide a nearly automatic process for belt making which will provide rapid and uniform output while using unskilled labor. For this purpose we employ a process in which the previously prepared backing is fed in continuous length over the bed of a double needle sewing machine. Strips of dress, trouser, or' other clothing fabric, of proper belt length, are fed through an edge folder which folds the side edges inward, and leads the folded fabric down to the backing. We further provide a mechanism to properly fold or form the material at the point, and we have found that side edge stitching alone is adequate to hold the formed point temporarily in its folded condition without stitching around the point itself. For this purpose the side edge stitching begins close to the point, but in order not to mar the desired appearance of the visible stitches on the face of the belt, the side edge stitching preferably begins back of the point an amount equal to the normal spacing between the stitching and the sides and around the point of the belt. Thus it is not desirable to simply run two continuous lines of close tight stitching along the s'ides of the backing, with the said stitching simply running over on to the point, for that would spoil the appearance of the finished belt.

The threads do run over the point in longer loops whichv are severed, when severing the backing. This feature is less critical if the regular stitch length is itself, longinstead of short. v i

A series of strips of fabric are thus formed at the point, and edge folded, and side stitched to the backing one after another, with a short length of backing between the trailing end of one fabric strip and the formed point of the next fabric strip. The long continuous length of embryo belts thus prepared may be received in and moved by a basket or the like to one or more additional operators, depending on the amount of subdivision of Fatented Dec. 2, 1958 operations desired. For example, a second operator may sever the backing in registration with theformed but unstitched point of each belt. A third operator may be seated at an ordinary single needle sewing machine and may stitch the formed point of each belt. If desired, both the second and third operations may be performed by one operator. I

In accordance with the present invention, our mechanism is preferably combined with a double needle sewing machine of the walking foot type in which positive feed of material is insured by using not only a serrated feed dog in the bed of the machine, but also a walking foot at each needle, the said feet and needles moving with and moving the fabric during the feed movement. In accordance with a feature and object of the invention, the point forming mechanism includes a forming tongue which is so thin and yieldable that it may be fed beneath the walking foot. This tongue is cut away or notched very close to its side edges in order to clear the needles, which then begin their stitching within the point, as desired.

Further objects center about the shape of the forming plate which cooperates with the forming tongue, and

the provision'of means to compel properrelation be-f tween the forming tongue and the forming plate by the Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a belt making machineembodying features of our invention; I p v Fig. 2 is a plan view of the edge folding, and point forming parts of the machine; I v

Fig. 3 is a partially sectioned elevation of the same parts of the machine, taken approximately inv the plane mately in the plane of the line 4-4 of Fig. 2; V V Fig. 5 is a partially sectioned horizontal view taken in the plane of the line 55 of Fig. 3, with the folder and former removed to show the guide for the belt backing;

Fig. 6 is an end view of said guide;

Fig. 7 is a vertical section drawn to enlarged scale and taken through the folder and former;

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary side elevation showing the relation of the former to the walking foot when the latter is raised; i t

Fig. 8a is a similar view showing the relation of the parts when the walking foot is lowered; T

Fig. 9 is a plan View of the lower end of the former, with a piece of dress fabric fed into the same; 1 I

'Fig. 10 is a similar view showing the relation of the] parts as the tongue of the former is raised;

Fig. 11 is a similar view showing the rela-tion of the parts as the raised tongue is moved forward;

Fig. 12 is an end view showing the shape of the dress fabric produced by left of Fig. 9; Fig. 13 shows how the end Fig. 14 shows how the forming of the point is com-j pleted, as viewed from the left of Fig. 11; v

Fig. 15 is a section through the folder taken approxi-' mately in the plane of the line 1515 of Fig. 7;

Fig. 16 is a fragmentary view showing how the back ing is severed in registration with the formed point preparatory to stitching;

Fig. 17 shows the stitched point; Fig. 18 is a side elevation of the point;

the edge folder, as viewed from the.

p fabric is initially bent dowri; ward by the former, as viewed from the left of Fig. 10:;

near each side edge at 86 to clear the needles.

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, Fig. 19 is a transverse section taken approximately in the plane of the line 1919 of Fig. 18;

Fig. 20 is explanatory of how belts are formed on a continuous backing; r

' Fig. 21 is a fragmentary planview showing the serrated feed dog of the sewing machine; and

Fig. 22 is a fragmentary plan view of a modified formng plate.

Referring to the drawing, and more particularly to Figs. 17, 18 and 19 of the drawing, the belt ordinarily comprises a stiffened backing 12 on which there is superposed and stitched a fabric front 14. Various kinds of backing may be used, but that here shown and most commonly employed is itself a laminated product consisting of a strip 16 of fibrous stiffening material backed by a thin fabric 18, the edges of the latter being folded over the edges of the part 16 as shown at 20. Such backing is well known, and is supplied in long lengths or rolls by a number of manufacturers who specialize in making the backing alone, and who sell the same to belt manufacturers. p p i The front 14 is a fabric, and ordinarily is a dress fabric. A typical though not the necessary situation is one in which a dress manufacturer wishes to sell his dresses with belts made of matching fabric, and supplies an appropriate amount of the dress material to the belt manufacturer, who in turn applies the dress material to the backing, and adds the appropriate buckle, etc. In Fig. 19 it will be seen that the dress material has an initial width almost double the width of the belt, and that its edges are folded downwardly and inwardly as shown at 22. The assembly is stitched by lines of stitching indicated at 24. The edge folding and edge stitching present no problem, but from examination of Figs. 17 and 18 it will be seen that a special problem arises at the point of each belt, for the fabric must be carefully folded inward to form a point of proper shape while keeping the point of reasonably uniform thickness. Moreover, a line of stitching is needed around the point, as is indicated at 26 in Fig. 17.

To speed up the manufacture of such belts, while dispensing with the need for skilled labor for folding or forming the material at the point, we have devised the machine shown in Fig. 1. This comprises a double needle sewing machine generally designated 30, which in the present case is a Singer #112W139' double needle sewing machine, it having two needles shown at 32, 34 fed respectively by separate threads 36 and 38. While not shown in the drawing it will be understood that in the bed of the machine there are separate shuttles and bobbins cooperating with the two needles. I

More generally, the belt making machine comprises a double needle sewing machine 30 including a presser foot and a feed dog, and an attachment which includes a guide 44 for guiding a belt backing over the sewing machine bed and over the feed dog of the sewing machine, directly beneath the presser foot and needles. There is a side edge folder 48 mounted over the guide 44 for receiving a strip 46 of fabric for the front of the belt. There is also a point forming means including a tongue having a point 76 (Fig. 2), said tongue extending through the edge folder 48, so that the fabric is edge folded about the tongue. The end of the tongue is cut away There is also a stationary forming plate 80 disposed in front of the needlesand having a 'V notch for mating cooperation with the tongue 76. There are also means including a pivot 102 and a slide 104 mounting the folder 48 and former 76 for movement toward and away from the needles, and for up-and-down movement.

. In terms of method or process, and with reference to Fig. 20 of the drawing, it will be seen that the method includes preliminarily preparing lengths of front fabric corresponding to the desired belt length; folding the side edges of a length of front fabric downward and inward;

p 4 folding the forward corners downward and inward to provide a point; superimposing the folded point on a continuous length of belt backing; and simultaneously stitching both side edges of the folded front fabric to the backing without stitching the formed point. This is repeated with another length of front fabric, and so on, in order to stitch a series of front fabrics end to end, with some space therebetween, along the continuous backing. The backing is then severed in registration with the formed point of the front fabric, and the point is stitched by a separate stitching operation using a single needle machine.

The roll of belt backing is shown at 40 in Fig. 1, and

the backing is fed across the bed 42 of the machine through the guide 44. In Fig. 5 the folder andformer have been removed, to show how the backing 40 is fed through guide 44 and thence beneath the presser foot of the machine. In the present case the presser foot comprises a center foot 50 which has an up-and-down motion, a walking foot 52 through which one needle (not shown) passes, and a walking foot 54 through which the other needle (not shown) passes. The walking feet 52 and 54 are integrally connected at a higher point, and have a four-way movement or feed movement. The needles shown at 32 and 34 inFig. 1 partake of the feed movement, and assist the feed of the belt through the machine.

Fig. 6 shows the guide 44 with the belt backing removed.

Referring now to Fig. 21 it will be seen that the feed dog in the bed of the machine is in three parts, there being a center part 56 which cooperates with the center foot (Fig. 5), a side part 58 (Fig. 21) which cooperates with the walking foot 52 (Fig. 5) and a side part 60 (Fig.

, 21) which cooperates with the walking foot 54 (Fig. 5).

The parts of the feed dog are serrated, and the side parts walking foot has a four-way movement, it moving down and forward, and then up and back. The needles have a similar motion, but with a much longer up and down stroke.

The relatively Wide strip of fabric 46 is edge folded by means described in greater detail with reference to Figs. 2, 3, 4 and 15. In Figs. 2 and 4 it will be seen that the edge folder has an initial width adequate to readily receive the wide strip of fabric, but that it then converges gradually and with appropriately rounded side edges to help fold the side edges of the fabric downwardly and inwardly. The top wall of the folder is cut away for much of its length, as shown at 66- (Fig. 2), in order to facilitate starting the end of the strip through the folder. At the entrant end there is no top wall, there being only edge walls 68 and a bottom wall on which the fabric is rested as it is pushed forward beneath the slotted top wall. The mechanism further comprises a relatively thin spring tongue indicated at 70 in Fig. 15. The outer end of this tongue rests on or may itself act as the bottom wall of the folder, and is reversely bent as is indicated M72 in Fig. 3. As will be understood by those skilled in the art, the tongue becomes narrower than the folder, and is raised from the bottom thereof, and at the lower end of the folder it is centered as shown in Fig. 15. Meanwhile the fabric 46 has its side edges bent downward and inward as shown at 74, to correspond to the, parts 22 shown in Fig. 19.

Referring now to Fig. 2, the point forming mechanism is intimately associated with the folder. The point forming mechanism comprises a forming tongue 76 which projects beyond-the end 78 of the folder and which is the free'end of the tongue 70 previously referred to. The

5. point forming mechanism further comprises a forming plate 80 which cooperates with the forming tongue 76. There is also slide mechanism generally designated 82 to afford a sliding movement of the tongue 76 relative to the plate 80, and additional mechanism including a camming plate 84 to control such movement.

Considering .the forming tongue in greater detail, it has a blunt point the angle of which correpsonds to the desired angle for the point of the belt. In the present case the sides of the point are at an angle of 60 to the sides of the .belt, thus forming a blunt angle of 120 at the point. The tongue 76 (see Figs. 2 and 9) is cut away or notched very close to its side edges, as shown at 86.

This forms a clearance for the needles 32 and 34 of the sewing machine, and in Fig. 2 it will be seen that the notches 86 are aligned with the walking feet 52 and 54, with similar spacing therebetween. Figs. 3, 7 and 8 show how the tongue 76 has a downward bend or step, indicated at 88. A comparison of Figs. 8 and 8a shows another significant feature of the tongue, namely the fact that because it is very thin and yieldable it may pass readily beneath the walking foot, and bends down with it when the walking foot descends as shown in Fig. 8a.

The point forming plate 89 is best. shown in Fig. 2. It has a V notch which mates with the point, of the tongue. It is formed at the end of an arm 90, and is secured in position by a pair of screws 92. The position of the forming plate 30 is adjustable by reason of the slot 94, and in practice it is positioned very close to the position assumed by the walking foot when it is toward the operator, as shown in Fig. 8.

Referring to Fig. 3, the forming plate 80 slopes downward toward the bed of the machine. The top wall is comparatively thin, as shown at 80 in Fig. 7, and the forming tongue 76 is normally lower than the plate 80, so that when the fabric slides out of the edgefolder around the tongue, it passes beneath the plate 80 as shown at 46 in Fig. 7.

In Figs. 2 and 9 it will be seen that the edges 96 of the V notch in the forming plate mate with the edges of the forming tongue 76. There is a passage 98 extending generally longitudinally of the belt, butpreferably biased toward one side. There is also a lateral clearance cut away on one side as indicated at'llllln The passage 8 and the clearance 100 aid in properly forming the ma terial at the point, and facilitate passageof the bunched or folded material when the forming tongue slides over the forming plate. V

.Referring now to Figs. 2; 3, and 4, the folderand tongue assembly is pivotally mounted on a rod .102 so that it'rnay be rocked slightly. The rod 102 is itself carried by a slide 104 which is slidable in rails or ways 1%.

These in turn are mounted on a base 108 which 'is secured.

to the bed 42 of the sewing machine, as by means of the screws 110. The latter may be received in slots to afford adjustment to align the forming tongue with the forming plate and the backing guide and the needles. The forming tongue isnormally urged downward and rearward by, pull.

springs 112. V

Referring now to Fig. 7 the'forming tongue 76 is shown in its rearward and downward'position. The belt backing 40 is disposedbeneath the forming mechanism. The fabric 46 has been inserted through the folder for a de-, sired distance beyond the end of the formingtongue 76. This distance is readily observed through the open passage in the forming plate 30. (If desired .a stopmay be provided projecting downwardly somewhat from the forming plate to arrest the insertion of thedress fabric, but we have found that such a stop is not needed and is preferably omitted.) The tongue is then rocked upwardly, as shown by the change from the solid line position 76 to the dotted line position 76', at which time the tongue is higher than the forming plate 80. This change is also indicated by the change from Fig. 9 to Fig. 10, and by the change from Fig. 12 to Fig. 13, for itbends the end fabric downward and begins the forming of the point. over the forming plate. This is shown by the change from Fig. 10 to Fig. 11, and the corresponding folding of the dress fabric is indicated by the change from Fig. 13 to Fig. 14. When the forming tongue has been pushed all the way forward it rides beneath the press-er foot of the sewing machine, or, more specifically, beneath the walking feet 52, 54 (Fig. 8). At this time the feet and needles are assumed elevated as shown, and ordinarily they will be, but if they happen to'be down instead of up, the forming tongue will be stopped short of the position shown in Fig. 8, but will move to that position the moment the sewing machine is started and before the needle comes down for its first stitch, for the operator urges the folder mechanism forward as the sewing machine is being started.

Even an unskilled operator is unlikely to push the forming tongue forward without first raising it, for the operator would see that no point is being formed or moved up to the needles. However, to insure no mistake in this regard the mechanism is preferably provided with camming means, and referring to Figs. 3 and 7 it will be seen that the camming plate 84 has a slot with an initial vertical portion 114, and a generally horizontal but downwardly sloping portion 116. A cam follower rod 118 is secured rigidly to the topof the folder, and one end thereof projects into the slot. It will be evident that the slot is so shaped and located that the forming tongue must be raised before it can be moved forward, and further that it is forced downward to follow the slope of the forming plate as it is moved forward.

Referring now to Fig. it will be seen that the backing is continuous. A first strip of dress fabric corresponding to the desired length of a belt is shown at 120. A second strip of dress fabric for a second belt is shown at 122. The point formed atthe beginning of a third strip of belt fabric is shown at 124. The stitching of strip I 120 begins close to but behind the folded point. The point is unstitched yet remains folded because of the stitching at the sides. Similarly the stitching begins anew for the fabric 122, and again for the fabric 124. The

point of the belt is not crossed by tight, close side stitch needle 32 has already penetrated the belt (including the stiff backing 40 as well as the folded material), and the needle itself partakes of the feed movement and aids the feed operation.

It will be understood that the downward offset or step 88 of the spring forming tongue, as well as the yieldable character of the tongue, permits the tongue to be fed beneath the pressure foot, or, more specifically, to be squeezed between the descending walking foot and the rising feed dog. These parts then carry the formed point of the dress fabric right off the metal forming point and along with the belt backing.

A continuous length of embryo belts formed as shown in Fig.. 20 is then severed in registration with the folded point, as shown in Fig. 16. This is preferably done by another operator, who may be the same one that stitches the point, or the stitching of the point may be performedby a third operator. This is done on a single needle sewing machine, and referring to Fig. 17, the operator preferably starts the machine at a point such as the point 130,

thereby slightly overlapping and strengthening the stitch ing of the side edge. The stitching is then carried parallel to but spaced from the edge of the point as shown at 26, and finally terminates at a point 131, thereby again The forming tongue then may be slid forward 7 slightly overlapping and strengthening the side edge stitchmg.

In connection with Fig. 9 reference was made to the lateral clearance 100. If desired a lateral clearance of this kind may be provided on both sides, and such a forming plate is shown in Fig. 22, in which the forming plate 140 has a longitudinal passage 142 as before, and a lateral clearance 144 as before, but an additional lateral clearance 146 on the other side of the passage 142. However, it should be understood that the forming plate is not truly symmetrical. This is so because the passage 142 is disposed at an angle to the longitudinal axis of the belt. This angle is more readily seen in Fig. 9 where one side of the passage is not cut away, but the angle is maintained in Fig. 22 even Where both sides are cut away.

The angular passage helps insure flat folding of the dress fabric at the point of the belt. Thus referring to Fig. 14, the fold 148 is the second or lower fold, and with the sloping passage the second or lower fold is always flat and in the same direction, instead of the material being merely randomly bunched at the point of the belt.

It is believed that the construction and method of use of our improved belt making machine, as well as the advantages thereof, will be apparent from the foregoing detailed description. The operator is preliminarily supplied with rolls of belt backing and a quantity of strips of fabric of suitable width and belt length. The starting end of a roll of backing is slid through the guide 44. One end of a strip of fabric is slid down the folder 48 until the end is beneath the forming plate a desired distance. The folder is then rocked and pushed forward and the sewing machine started. The machine runs freely until the side edge stitching is carried to and somewhat beyond the trailing end of the length of fabric, whereupon the sewing machine is stopped and the next piece of fabric fed through the folder. This operation is repeated until the entire roll of belt backing has been converted into a chain of embryo belts. This chain meanwhile has fallen into a suitable box or basket which then is moved over to another operator for severing the backing at the formed point of each embryo belt and for stitching around the point on a conventional single needle sewing machine. Except for the first belt there ordinarily will be at each side one extra long loose stitch or loop of thread around the front edge of the point, and this is severed when the backing is severed at the point, so that in effect the true desired line of stitching begins back of the point a short distance, all as previously explained.

It will be understood that while we have described the belt backing as a stiff, previously prepared laminated material, it is not essential, even though it is preferred, to use such material for the back of the belt. It will also be apparent that while we have shown and described our invention in a preferred form, changes may be made in the structure shown, without departing from the scope of the invention as sought to be defined in the following claims.

We claim:

1. A belt making attachment for use with a double needle sewing machine, including a presser foot and a feed dog, said attachment comprising a guide for guiding a belt backing over the sewing machine bed and feed dog beneath the presser foot and needles, a downwardly sloping side edge folder mounted over said guide for receiving a strip of fabric for the front of a belt, and point forming means including a tongue having a point, said tongue extending through the edge folder so that the fabric is edge-folded about the tongue, the end of said tongue being rearwardly slotted near each side edge to to an elevation beneath or above said forming plate the slotted forward end of said tongue when moved upward and forward to form the fabric into a point, clearing the forming plate for reception of the foot and needles.

2. A belt making attachment for use with a double needle sewing machine, including a presser foot and a feed dog, said attachment comprising a guide for guiding a continuous belt backing over the sewing machine bed and feed dog beneath the presser foot and needles, a downwardly sloping side edge folder mounted over said guide for receiving a strip of fabric for the front of a belt, and point forming means including a spring tongue having a blunt point, said tongue extending through the edge folder so that the fabric is edge-folded about the tongue, the end of said tongue being rearwardly slotted near each side edge to clear the needles, a stationary forming plate disposed in front of said needles and having a fixed V notch for mating cooperation with said tongue, means mounting said edge folder and tongue for movement toward and away from the needles and for upand-down movement to an elevation beneath or above said forming plate, and means to insure that the tongue is raised before being moved forward and is lowered only after being moved rearwardly the slotted forward end of said tongue when moved upward and forward to form the fabric into a point, clearing the forming plate for reception of the foot and needles.

3. A belt making attachment for use with a double needle sewing machine, including a presser foot and a feed dog, said attachment comprising a guide for guiding a belt backing over the sewing machine bed and feed dog beneath the presser foot and needles, a downwardly sloping side edge folder mounted over said guide for receiving a strip of fabric for the front of a belt, and point forming means including a tongue having a'point, said tongue extending through the edge folder so that the fabric is edge-folded about the tongue, and a stationary forming plate disposed in front of said needles and having a fixed V notch for mating cooperation with said tongue, means mounting said edge folder and tongue for movement toward and away from the needles and for up-and-down movement to an elevation beneath or above said forming plate, and means including a camming slot to insure that the tongue is raised before being moved forward and is lowered only after being moved rearwardly.

4. A belt making attachment for use with a double needle sewing machine, including a foot and a feed dog, said attachment comprising a guide for guiding a belt backing over the sewing machine bed and feed dog beneath the foot and needles, a downwardly sloping side edge folder mounted over said guide for receiving a strip of fabric for the front of a belt, and point forming means including a tongue having a point, said tongue extending through the edge folder so that the fabric is edge-folded about the tongue, the end of said tongue being slotted near each side edge to clear the needles, and a stationary forming plate disposed in front of said needles and having a fixed V notch for mating cooperation with said tongue, means mounting said edge folder and tongue for movement toward and away from the needles and for up-and-down movement to an elevation beneath or above said forming plate,'said tongue being so thin that in its forward position it is adapted'to slide under the foot, and said slots in said tongue affording movement of the tongue over the former and under the foot a desired distance beyond the needles without obstructing operation of the needles.

5. A belt making attachment for use with a double needle sewing machine, including a walking foot at the needles, and a feed dog, said attachment comprising a guide for guiding a belt backing over the sewing machine bed and feed dog beneath the foot and needles, a downwardly sloping side edge folder mounted over said guide for receiving a strip of fabric for the front of a belt, and point forming means including a spring tongue having a blunt point, said tongue extending through the edge folder so that the fabric is edge-folded about the tongue, the end of said tongue being slotted near each side edge to clear the needles, and a stationary forming plate disposed in front of said needles and having a fixed V notch for mat ing cooperation with said tongue, means mounting said edge folder and tongue for movement toward and away from the needles and for up-and-down movement to an elevation beneath or above said forming plate, said tongue being so thin and resiliently mounted that in its forward position it is adapted to slide under the walking foot and to move downward with it, and said slots in said tongue afiording movement of the tongue over the former and under the walking foot a desired distance beyond the needles without obstructing operation of the needles.

6. A belt making attachment for use with a double needle sewing machine, including a foot and a feed dog, said attachment comprising a guide for guiding a continuous belt backing over the sewing machine bed and feed dog beneath the foot and needles, a downwardly sloping side edge folder mounted over said guide for receiving a strip of fabric for the front of a belt, and point forming meansincluding a spring tongue having a blunt point, said tongue extending through the edge folder so that the fabric is edge-folded about the tongue, the end of said tongue being slotted near each side edge to clear the needles, and a stationary forming plate disposed in front of said needles and having a fixed V notch for mating cooperation with said tongue, means mounting said edge folder and tongue for movement toward and away from the needles and for up-and-down movement to an elevation beneath or above said forming plate, said forming plate having a center passage extendingin the direction of belt feed but biased at somewhat of an angle, at least one of the sides of said forming plate being cut away to provide a lateral offside clearance to facilitate passage of the front belt fabric at the folded point the slotted forward end of said tongue when moved upward and forward to form the fabric into a point, clearing the forming plate for reception of the foot and needles.

7. A belt making attachment for use with a double needle sewing machine, including a foot and a feed dog, said attachment comprising a guide for guiding a continuous belt backing over the sewing machinebed and feed dog beneath the foot and needles, a side edge folder mounted over said guide for receiving a strip of fabric for the front of a belt, and point forming means including a tongue having a point, said tongue extending through the edge folder so that the fabric is edge-folded about the tongue, the end of said tongue being slotted near each side edge to clear the needles, and a stationary forming plate disposed in front of said needles and having a fixed V notch for mating cooperating with said tongue, means mounting said edge folder and tongue for movement toward and away from the needles and for up-and-down movement to an elevation beneath or above said forming plate, said forming plate having a center passage extending generally in the direction of belt feed the slotted forward end of said tongue when moved upward and forward to form the fabric into a point, clearing the forming plate for reception of the foot and needles.

8. A belt making attachment for use with'a double needle sewing machine, including a foot and a feed dog, said attachment comprising a guide for guiding a continuous belt backing over the sewing machine bed and feed dog beneath the foot and needles, a side edge folder mounted over said guide for receiving a strip of fabric for the front of a belt, and point forming means including a tongue having a point, said tongue extending through the edge folder so that the fabric is edge-folded about the tongue, the end of said tongue being slotted near each side edge to clear the needles, and a stationary forming plate disposed in front of said needles and having a fixed V notch for mating cooperation with said tongue, means mounting said edge folder and tongue for movement toward and away from the needles and for up-anddown.

movement to an elevation beneath or above said forming plate, said forming plate having a center passage extending generally in the direction of belt feed, at least one ofthe sides of said forming plate being cut away to provide a lateral offside clearance to facilitate passage of the front belt fabric at the folded point the slotted forward end of said tongue when moved upward and forward to form the fabric into a point, clearing the forming plate for reception of the foot and needles.

9. A belt making attachment for use with a double needle sewing machine, including a foot and a feed dog, said attachment comprising a guide for guiding a continuous belt backing over the sewing machine bed and feed dog beneath the foot and needles, a side edge folder mounted over said guide for receiving a strip of fabric for the front of a belt, and point forming means includ: ing a tongue having a point, said tongue extending through the edge folder so that the fabric is edge-folded about the tongue, the end of said tongue being slotted near each side edge to clear the needles, and a stationary forming plate disposed in front of said needles and having a fixed V notch for mating cooperation with said tongue, means mounting said edge folder and tongue for movement toward and away from-the needles and for up-and-down movementto an elevation beneath or above said forming plate, said forming plate having a center passage extending generally in the direction of belt feed, but biased at somewhat of an angle toward one side relative tothe direction of belt feed the slotted forward end of said tongue when moved upward and forward to form the fabric into a point, clearing the forming plate for reception of the foot and needles.

10. A belt making attachment for use with a double needle sewing machine, including a foot and a feed dog, said attachment comprising a guide for guiding a continuous belt backing over the sewing machine bed and feed dog beneath the foot and needles, a downwardly sloping side edge folder mounted over said guide for receiving a strip of fabric for the front of a belt, and point forming means including a spring tongue having a blunt point, said tongue extending through the edge folder so that the fabric is edge-folded about the tongue, the end of said tongue being slotted near eachside edge to clear the needles, and a stationary forming plate disposed in front of said needles and having a fixed V notch for mating cooperation with said tongue, means mounting said edge folder and tongue for movement toward and away from the needles and for up-and-down movement to an elevation beneath or above said forming plate, said forming plate having a center passage extending in the direction of belt feed, at least one of the sides of said forming plate being cut away to provide a lateral offside clearance to facilitate passage of the front belt fabric at the folded point, the slotted forward end of said tongue when moved upward and forward to form the fabric into a point clearing the forming plate for reception of the foot and needles, andmeans including a camming slot to insure that the tongue is raised before being moved forward,

and is lowered only after being moved rearwardly.

ll. A belt making attachment for use with a double needle sewing machine, including a foot and a feed dog, said attachment comprising a guide for guiding a continuous belt backing over the sewing machine bed and feed dogbeneath the foot and needles, a downwardly sloping side edge folder mounted over said guide for receiving a strip of fabric for the front of a belt, and point forming means including a spring tongue having a blunt point, said tongue extending through the edge folder so that the fabric is edge-folded about the tongue, the end of said tongue being slotted near each side edge to clear the needles, and a stationary forming plate disposed in front of said needles and having a fixed V notch for mating cooperation with said tongue, means mounting said edge folder and tongue for movement movement to an elevation beneath or above said forming plate, the slotted forward end of said'tongue when moved upward and forward to form the fabric into a point clearing the forming plate for reception of the foot and needles, the end of said tongue being thin and stepped downwardly, and because of it thinness and downward step being adapted to slide under the foot.

12. A belt making attachment for use with a double needle sewing machine, including a foot and a feed dog,-

said attachment comprising a'guidev-for guiding a continuous belt backing over the sewing machine bed and feed dog beneath the foot and needles, a downwardly sloping side edge folder mounted over said guide for receiving a strip of fabric for the front of a belt, and point forming means including a spring tongue having a blunt point, said tongue extending through the edge folder so that the fabric is edge-folded about the tongue, the end of said tongue being slotted near each side edge to clear the needles, and a stationary forming plate disposed in front of said needles and having a fixed V notch for mating cooperation with said tongue, means mounting said edge folder and tongue for movement toward and away from the needles and for up-and-down movement to an elevation beneaath or above said forming plate, said forming plate having a center passage extending in the direction of belt feed but biased at somewhat of an angle,

at least one of the sides of Said forming plate being cut" away to provide a lateral offside clearance to facilitate passage of the front belt fabric at the folded point, the slotted forward end of said tongue when moved upward and forward to form the fabric into a point clearing the forming plate for reception of the foot and needles, the end of said'tongue being thin and stepped downwardly, and because of its thinness and downward step being adapted to slide under the foot.

13. A belt making attachment for use with a double needle sewing machine, including a foot and a feed dog, said attachment comprising a guide for guiding a continuous belt backing over the sewing machine bed and feed dog beneath the foot and'needles, a downwardly sloping side edge folder mounted over said guide for receiving a strip of fabric for the front of a belt, and point forming means including a spring tongue having a blunt point, said tongue extending through the edg e folder so that the fabric is edge-folded about the tongue, the end of said tongue being slottednear each side edge to clear the needles, and a stationary forming plate disposed in front of said needles and'having a fixed V notch for mating cooperation with said tongue, means mounting said edge folder and tongue for movement toward and away from the needles and. for up-and-down movement to an elevation beneath or above said forming plate, said forming plate having a center passage extending in the direction of belt feed but biased at somewhat of an angle, at least one of the sides of said forming plate being cut away to provide a lateral offside clearance to facilitate passage of the front belt fabric at the folded point, the slotted forward end of said tongue when moved upward and forward to form the fabric into a point clearing the forming plate for reception of the foot and needles, the end of said tongue being thin and stepped downwardly, and because of its thinness and downward step being adapted to slide under the foot, and means including a camming slot to insure that the tongue is raised before being moved forward, and is lowered only after being moved rearwardly.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 857,492 Scott June 18, 1907 1,135,691 Hindercr Apr. 13, 1915 1,201,423 Almond Oct. 17, 1916 1,906,104 Sailer Apr. 25, 1933 1,982,467 Daniel Nov. 27, 1934 2,060,631 Myers Nov. 10, 1936 2,635,670 Winberg Apr. 21, 1953 2,685,908 Loew Aug. 10, 1954 

